"Modern Family" Star Eric Stonestreet to Play Fatty Arbuckle

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Emmy-award winning actor Eric Stonestreet has lined up a prestige project to fill his "Modern Family" downtime. Looks like he'll be playing infamous silent film comedian Fatty Arbuckle in an HBO movie based on David A. Yallop's book "The Day the Laughter Died."

Arbuckle, of course, was one of the silent film era's biggest (in every way) stars, until he was accused of raping and murdering a woman during a holiday party. Even though he was acquitted of all charges, the damage to his career was done and he never recovered.

The project is being headed up by writer Kirk Ellis ("John Adams") and director Barry Levinson ("You Don't Know Jack").

So, a solidly-pedigree'd project that lets Stonestreet to bring his comedy game (which we know he's got) while also allowing him to show off his drama chops AND doesn't require him to lose weight? This is a win-win all around.